new Mormon art

I was watching the new I'm a Mormon videos online today. They had some very interesting people on the site that were famous. People I'd actually heard of that were Mormon. When these ads first started I didn't pay them much attention. I figured they would be boring like most LDS ads have been for years. During my views I found two new artist that I liked. The first was Rose Datoc Dall. Her blog is http://rosedatocdall.blogspot.com/ and http://www.rosedatocdallfineart.com/.

After watching her video I had to go look at her paintings. These are probably the first Religious themed paintings I've liked in a really long time. Rose's style is beautiful. My favorite painting that I've seen so far of her's, is Eve's Creation. This painting is beautiful. The way the shadows and lights play with each other. I just think the style that Rose paints in is amazing. This is the kind of art I want the church to get behind. It's new and different than what the church has been pimping for the last decade. I think it's time for a change.

The second artist I found was Cassandra Barney. You can find her blog at http://churningsandburnings.blogspot.com/ and her art can be found at http://www.cassandrabarney.com. Her style is different and just as amazing. I can't give justice to the art work she does. You need to go and look at it yourself.

These artist are amazing. The very different styles they bring to world is important. Looking at the I'm a Mormon ads in a different light now. These ads are not just to introduce people to the Mormon faith, but to help the Mormon community. We are such a large community that it's hard to find each other sometimes. These ads can help spotlight different individuals and show Mormons a different way of viewing the world in our own little corner of it. I plan to continue to watch these different ads and learn more about my people and hopefully find some more great artist.

Mono for a Year

"I once thought I had mono for an entire year. It turned out I was just really bored." - Wayne Campbell

I'm a little bored with my life right now. It's my own fault. I can't motivate myself to do anything really awesome right now. Last year at this time I was drawing comic and working on paintings. I was doing both of these things until a few months ago and then I just stopped. I don't have any great ideas for new comics. Well that's not true. I've got a couple ideas for ED the Business Warrior, but I want to do more than just ED. One thing I want to do is draw a Mormon comic. I've been feeling like this is something I should do for awhile. I've been dabbling with it in my daily sketches. I've done a few Mormon:Facts, but I want to do a story. Then the question is what do I write/draw about? I do not want to do a pioneer story. I think there's to much of that in church literature already, plus I want to appeal to more than just Utah Mormons. I would like to do a story with Mormon characters more than a story about the Mormon faith. That still leaves a huge hole of what do I want to do. I have to really be passionate about it too. If I'm not, I won't finish it. That happens to all my comics I start that are longer than five or six pages. The only comic that has had any story lines over that many pages is ED. It's strange to say this, but ED is my most accomplished comic I've ever drawn. Although I believe my Political Fridays comic is my most viewed comic I've ever done. Being able to see stats are awesome. I just need to find something that will motivate me. Once I'm motivated I should be out of my funk. If it's drawing a Mormon comic that would be cool. If it something else that would be good too.

i heart baseball

I have a secret love, but it's okay my wife knows. It's baseball. I like going to the games. I like watching a game in the middle of the afternoon and falling asleep in the fifth inning. I like the overpriced hot dogs and popcorn. I like the silly little entertainment show they put on between innings. I like to watch the score board and see the stats. I like watching movies about baseball, like Field of Dreams and Eight Man Out. I like watching batters hit home runs and pitchers striking players out. I like the excitement of it all. After all, this is America's favorite pass time. It should be loved by everyone. Baseball isn't my life, but it's a fun distraction.

Mormon Culture: the art

A couple weeks ago my family had a reunion. It was in Iowa, which is about an eight hour drive for my wife and me. We left very early, because that's the best time to drive somewhere. In the wee hours of the morning many discussions were had, ideas were formulated. One thing we both came to realize is that Mormon Culture suck. Growing up Mormon and still practicing I think I'm allowed to voice my opinion on this matter. I think as a culture the Mormon church is failing. Maybe if you live in Utah you don't feel this way, but I've been to Utah and lived in Idaho, guess what? Their is no culture where in Utah and Idaho.

Today I want to talk about art in Mormon culture. When I think about the art I see hanging in many Mormon houses and churches I feel sorry for those people who view it. Greg Olson, Simon Dewey, and Liz Lemon should not be allowed to sell their art at the high volumes that they do. They are the Thomas Kinkades of the Mormon community. If you like Thomas Kinkade than you do not like art in my opinion. That is how I feel about Greg Olson and company. They are purely out to make money, they has no soul. Their art is death. When I look around at the churches and homes of Mormons, I feel death seeping from them. It's like maple syrup slowly oozing out of maple trees.

Here is one problem, I do not know of any real Mormon artist. That's not completely true. I know this good sculpture in my ward. The pieces I've seen of his are good. Next to Simon Dewey and company they are breath taking. I think people like him should be promoted more in our culture. They should be getting requested for their works.

Here's another problem, every few years (it might be yearly) the LDS church puts on am International Art Competition. I've been to one of these competitions. People from all over the world submit art work based on a theme. It's usually a religious theme, which is fine since the church is sponsoring it. In these competition you actually see real art about the Mormon faith. Some of it is really good and some of it makes me feel dead inside (like Kinkade and Olson). The problem with this is that the show is in Salt Lake City in the Conference Center and that's it. Why? They could go around the world to large cities and have art showings. A huge PR move they are missing. Plus I want to learn about new Mormon artist. I want to be able to purchase prints of their works so I can have good Mormon art in my house. The church buys the winning pieces of every contest. Where are they? From the website info, I'd say they are still in Salt Lake at the Church History Museum.

Why a history museum? Why not start art museums and search out other great Mormon artist. Bring our culture to life. I would want this museum to collect more than just religious art works though. It should be a celebration of us as a people. Mormons are diverse. Do we need a million paintings of pioneers crossing the plains? I don't think so. My pioneer heritage is my parents being baptized in California and moving east in a U haul. Why is there no great art work of modern day pioneers? Why not celebrate all of our pioneer heritage in art instead of just the select few who traveled to Utah in covered wagons and handcarts? Where my parents sacrifice not good enough?

I have rambled on for awhile now. Here's what I want you to get out of this blog.

1. Don't accept the status quo for Mormon art.

2. Greg Olson and company's art should be questioned. Is it really art or commercial packaging?

3. Promote your local Mormon Artist, let your friends and family know about them.

If you do these three things, you will be a better Mormon art consumer and help our culture grow in a good way. Remember Mormon culture does not have to be defined by a select few, you can help redefine it. I know I try everyday. Plus if you know of any good Mormon artist let me know, post it in the comments. I'm sure everyone will be happy to discover new artist.

allison picture

ragdoll

Once in a blue moon I give some crazy comic a chance and will read/buy it. Okay I'll read almost any comic I can get my hands, but buy that's a different story. I like to stick to characters that I know and love like Spider-man, Wolverine, Invincible, Batman, and other cool characters like that. Back when I had a bit of more income flow I would would dabble in collecting comics in a big way, but now it's very small. I can count on two hands all the comics I buy. So, I decide to give a comic I've heard very little about a chance about four months ago, Lil' Depressed Boy. This comic doesn't have superheroes. This comic doesn't have tights. This comic doesn't have demons or supernatural events. The character is not detective or PI. He's a ragdoll named Lil' Depressed Boy or LDB for short. In all cases he could easy have been a normal boy, but for a gimmick they made him a ragdoll instead. I think this was a clever idea. The whole world around him is normal and they treat him like he's a normal person. I think this perfect. I think we all have a little ragdoll in us. I know I relate to LDB alot. He's shy, really like music, and plays video games. Plus he's not so great with women, until he meets this cute girl at the laundry mat. Thus starts the great boy meets girl, boy likes girl. Hi-jinx occur. The first four issues of the comic are out now. I'm not totally in love with the book, mainly because I feel like I could have been LDB before I got married. The story hit really close to home. Going to parties with her but not fitting in with her friends. Trying to be cool, but feeling like a fool the entire time. The story has so much love and depth in it. This isn't a comic that someone made up. This is someone's heart and soul. I'm not sure if the author meant to do that or if he's telling the story from his own experiences, because it feel like it. I think this is one of the best personal stories out there for comics. If you ever want to read comics, but not superheros or large space battles, but a personal story this is an amazing story for that. Plus I drew a little comic for it. Check it out!

chapbook

This week I have been ignoring my school work, which is normal for me, and been focusing on Allison’s school work, which is not usual for me. About a month ago Allison asked me to illustrate her chapbook for her. I thought she called it a chatbook, which makes more sense than being called a chapbook. My friend Seej looked it up on Wikipedia to find out what a chapbook is. Wiki said, “Chapbook is a generic term to cover a particular genre of pocket-sized booklet, popular from the sixteenth through to the later part of the nineteenth century. No exact definition can be applied.” Well what I illustrated was a book of poems for Allison. She’s in an advanced poetry class and she wanted me to illustrate them for her collection. This is probably the first time I’ve ever actually illustrated something for someone else. I don’t know of anyone who writes things that need to be illustrated. It was so awesome to help Allison out. I wanted to share some of the illustrations I did for the chapbook. I hope you enjoi.

(Note to see the full sized pictures you need to click on them.)

This is the cover; the chapbook is entitled monsters of my heart. The title actually came after the drawing. It might have had some influence on the name.

This next picture is the illustration for the poem Sixteen. This poem is amazing, like all of Allison's poems. If you can figure out what the poem is about from this picture that would be awesome.





This last picture is the back cover. I actually drew this a really long time ago, but I just colored this picture this week. I felt this was a perfect endcap for the book. You would have to read the poems to understand, but it's perfect. Allison also loves trees, so it makes senses that the tree would replace a monster in the heart.



There were more illustrations, but some of them are old and one of them frames the poem it is illustrating. So this is all you get.